A Cooler Mondailies

Good morning gang. I must admit, I'm a little excited because humidity is down to 85% here, and the temp is 68. Maybe little things excite me. :-) Going for a 6 mile recovery.

QOTD - What great scenes have you've seen while running? Could be beautiful, ugly, strange, descriptive, etc.

H2T - Congratulations on sticking with the plan to go out slower and progress from there. Also meeting your other goals... great job!

Flicker - I'd be happy to help on HR. Yes, resting will help, so will the max. You can guess based on high effort runs, but a real test is best. We can talk more if you're interested. Links in my sig gives some detail too.

Decent start for the xc season. The course was mostly grass and relatively flat. Nice weather conditions but the course was wet from recent rain. There were 9 teams with the boys placing 5th, girls placing 3rd. The boys 3rd-5th places were decided by only a 4-point spread. Our top girl was 4th OA, top boy 9th OA. We have some work to do (especially in regards to tangents and tactics) but it’s early. We were missing one of the top varsity boys because he was suspended for something really stupid—he was one of many caught on campus with a small neon-colored clear plastic squirt gun. I understand schools sensitivity to weapons on campus, but this item clearly was not going to be mistaken for anything dangerous. Common sense about these things has totally gone out the window.

From yesterday: I prefer not to carry water and often don’t, but it has been necessary for LRs in the heat/humidity lately. I usually use the hand-held amphipod but yesterday I used the fuel belt. The belt tends to spin around my waist as I run and sometimes chafes. I don’t know what made me choose to use it yesterday. It did migrate around my waist a little bit but no other problems. I think I’m seeing a positive aspect of gaining 10# this summer.

Easy 5 on tap today to recover from yesterdays 18 mi LR. Felt great at 8:00/mi avg and solid finish (7:13 last mile).

QOTD: the beauty of running is that you get to enjoy scenery of all types. I cannot begin to describe all the terrific things Ive seen. My routine route has fantastic views of Lake Lanier. I particularly enjoy this route on a moonlit night. The moonlight reflects off the water and illuminates the adjacent woods and trail.

Hackker and Smoke – congrats on the race! Will be looking forward to race report!

Flicker – impressive monthly mileage. That number would be a record for me.

NoCo – edibles prizes rule! Nice win!

Maureen – hope the headache has gone away

Burglar – your dog is quite the athlete! 16 mi is impressive for a spaniel

Toe - congrats on the new milestones! Running is great for teaching patience. It took me a long time to grasp the concept of pacing/negative split and it seem you are well ahead of the curve. Keep up the good work! Hope DD is feeling better today.

Smoke – thanks for convincing me to try the Adidas Boost shoe a little while longer. I was ready to return them. Now that I’ve gotten used to them, I’m getting attached. Wore them for LR today for first time and Achilles problem is feeling better than it has in a long time.

Wish I were running this am but have doc apt downtown. Traffic on Monday mornings is extra miserable so have to allow lots of extra time. Run will have to wait until xc practice.

Morning freaks! Fraking beat today. After checking out of the hotel yesterday we hit the Sleeping Bear dunes in northern MI, because nothing screams "fun" after a hard race then climbing up monster sand dunes at a 45 degree angle. Then while heading out, we ran across a nice beach are in Traverse City and since we had our bathing suits and a towel, decided to spend some time there. The cool water actually felt good on the legs. Course, by the time we rolled into home it was just before midnight. So everyone in the house is beat today, amazing my DD got up and made the 7:06am bus. Will have to put together a short race report later when I'm fully awake.

Mark - Down to 85%? Wow, that still sounds rough!

DrBart - Nice strong run, gotta love when you can nail that last mile.

Good morning, all. Since today is an SRD, thought I'd login early for a change. Also, DD's fever spiked to 104 last night and her dinner came back up at 3 a.m., so I'm just taking the day off. I'm too sleep deprived to feign working from home. I'll keep track of emails. Otherwise, it's a Pixar movie day for me.

Thanks for the kind words, MarkRice and Dr. Bart. It's days like yesterday that keep me recharged. I am very grateful to have found this forum in the past few weeks.

QOTD: I have been fortunate to run in some very historic and beautiful areas. As a history aficionado, this suits me well. When I lived in the Boston area (by the Cambridgeside Galleria, for those familiar), my running route was exclusively along the Charles, on both the Cambridge and Boston sides. From Boston, I would pass the "reverse curve" sign that people had "edited" with paint to read "reverse the curse" in reference to the Red Sox. Post-2004, the edits were removed. I loved that sign. I crossed the Harvard Bridge and counted the "Smoots" that had been marked by some MIT (I believe) students one drunken night. Though this is also graffiti, it has been allowed and accepted into the culture. Police even reference the Smoot number when calling in a case. For those of you unfamiliar with a "Smoot", a student namesake was laid on the bridge and measured. There are markings along the bridge, counting the Smoots across. Most are intervals of 100 Smoots, with an exception for a denotation for 69 Smoots (labeled "heaven"). From the less picturesque Cambridge side, I had a great view of downtown Boston. When I moved to MD for grad school, I ran around a short (1.25 mile) lake. My one story there was when my DW and I went for a run and noticed a couple of hundred people on the banks. Midway around the lake, we were cut off by the police. Evidently, the area was used as a staging ground for fireworks and we were caught in the middle (hence, the "cheering crowd" that greeted us). As awkward as it was running in front of everyone, we were able to stop and see the fireworks from very close up. My current LR route is along the George Washington Parkway route in Alexandria. It's the site of a 10 mile route along the Potomac and passes a restaurant frequented by Washington, Franklin and other colonials (servers still wear colonial garb, use steel plates, etc.). The trek serves as my out and back. If I make it to my 20 mile run, the turnaround point will be Mt. Vernon. My office is 2 blocks from the other end. I can't wait for the day in which I start at my office, turn around at Mt. Vernon and make it back to my office (also a great staging area for my long runs).

DD is showing signs of more energy. Time to pick a Pixar! Have a great Monday!

gm. got 10m in before work today, hope to run the 4m home from work. have a couple's weekend planned this weekend with 2 other couples at one of their lake houses. first time DW and i have been sans kids in a long time so we're excited. weekend starts friday so i'm scrunching 6 days of running into 5 days. so friday morning will be less than ideal with an early rise, 20m run, then 5 hour drive immediately after running. friday night is exepcted to be a bender-style night so i'll have to dig deep for the energy. according to the 18/70 schedule, taper begins after that 20, but anyone who's been through pfitz knows it doesn't really feel like taper until the 2nd of the 3 weeks.

drB- wow, suspended from school for that?! i can see a lesser punishment but suspension seems a bit much.

multi - glad to hear of pain-free running. feels like the world is spinning again

hackker - i can't believe you were scaling dunes yesterday. how are your feet (toenails) looking today? you're a trooper to do those activities. now relax today, will ya?

mark - 85%. ugghhh. hope the cut back week has you feeling better.

htt - sorry to hear about DD. staying home and watching some Pixar is a small positive to her feeling icky though. my DS and i were sick with the flu together about a year ago and we got quaranteened in the room and he still brings it up as though it was a vacation or adventure. to this day i still have fond memories of my mom taking care of me when i was a sick 7 year old. hope she feels better soon though.

Good morning. I got in just over 13 miles on mostly trails as the sun came up. I got in 12.6 or so, then ran a postcard I have for my niece and nephews to the post-box about 0.5 mi away. As I ran back, a neighbour's dogs was barking crazily at me, racing around his yard, contained only by his invisible fence. This dog has broken though his 'fence' about 3 times and attacked my dogs (they were all on leash, we were not on the property, in one case we were on the sidewalk in front of the house, and the other times we were across the road). Our dogs don't fight back, and needless to say, I don't walk our dogs by there anymore, despite speaking with them very nicely to try to get a solution to the problem. This time, I was worried he would break through and come after me, but he must have been fearing the wrath of electricity around his neck. Now relaxing and sitting down to coffee. I was hoping for a a few more miles, but my gut wasn't happy and I decided I probably still need some time to recover from last week's activities, so the extra miles might hurt more than help. I also took a bit of a gamble and didn't bring enough water, so probably better I cut it short.

Mark - glad the weather is making things more pleasant for you.

DrBart - sounds like the XC team has started a strong season, they can only improve. Enjoy the fish. I hate belts.

Multi - enjoy the spin and sushi! You should do Big Sur, it is amazing, and they do such a good job with organization. It was my first marathon, and I will always think highly of it.

Hackker - your post 50 activities compete with mine: I went to a concert in Columbus after. It was totally worth it. Completely agree about the cold water on the legs. On our run back from Hope Pass last week, we took some time to cool off in the Arkansas River. After that, DH and I found running way easier and our legs felt much better.

JOLVM - I just noticed the 'm' is all grown up to 'M'! Friday sounds like it will be rough, but I can think of nothing better post 20 miles than a few pints. That said, a 5 hour ride in the car sounds like a terrible idea.

From yesterday:

BB - thank you for depositing your pet's waste properly! Also, your dog has great endurance. One of our dogs would be a great runner, judging from the few times I have taken her out. She rarely stops to sniff, and she paces right alongside me very well. She is one of those dogs that just wants to run, where you can tell she is just so happy to be out for a jog. However, I feel guilty not taking the other 2 and I'm paranoid I am going to injure her in some way (hazard of my profession, I see the worst case scenarios). That said, maybe I should start taking her more now that the cooler fall weather is here.

Great job to all racers. Congrats on the 50 Smoke and Hackker, and JOLVM awesome PR for the half!

QOTD from yesterday - this summer I started to use a hydration pack and I have been loving it. I hate carrying things when I run, and carrying an empty water bottle is my idea of torture. Why carry something if it is empty and no longer serves a purpose? It's ok if I can fill it up at water fountains, but some of the trails I run on don't have access to that. I hate belts because they bounce and slide around. The pack has worked out really well. It can be heavy to start, but the beauty of it is that it gets lighter as the run goes on. That said, I still enjoy runs where I don't take anything with me. Today I took a 8 oz water bottle and stashed it in the bush on the trail. I can get by without hydration for about 15 mi, but it was a bit warm out, and I decided it wouldn't be enough for the extra miles I wanted, so it was a bit of a gamble.

QOTD - This morning I had a Cooper's Hawk fly right over me and perch on a branch just off the trail. That was pretty neat. The scenery I saw last week running in the mountains was amazing. I still recall vividly the sun rising over the Twin Lakes marsh area as we ran toward Hope Pass and the reflection on the Arkansas River as we crossed it. Pacing my friend, I can still hear the hum and click of the power lines as we hiked up Powerline to Sugar Loaf Pass. As we crested the pass, the almost full moon came into view, a brilliant shade of gold in the dark velvet sky. Coming around Turquoise Lake, the rising sun cast light on Mount Massive, making it look a soft pink colour. These are things that photos can't quite capture at times, even with the best equipment.

I have been fortunate to run in some amazing places like Providencia, a small island in the Caribbean. I will never forget the turquoise ocean as I looked out onto the horizon. That said, I could also see an unbelievable amount of trash that had washed up along the shore, so that was quite depressing to see how we treat our oceans as a dumping ground.

I could go on, but overall, it's probably best to sum up that I feel very fortunate to live in a place where I can escape cars and find myself surrounded by woods, and endless trails, with great scenery around every bend.

Running after work all week, so plan on getting in 7 later. I had a goal of getting in at least 200 miles this month, and it looks like I'll make that despite not running long this coming Saturday. I have a HM a week from today so will take it easy Saturday and Sunday.

Hackker: Sleeping Bear Dunes is one of my favorite places. I've hiked up that dune before, it's hard on rested legs, can't imagine trying that after a long race like that.

ATTQOTD: Many great scenes over the years, but one immediately comes to mind. I love to run around the National Mall in DC. A couple of years ago I was there for work around Christmas time and stayed a couple blocks north of the White House. I'd get up early in the AM for a run--still dark, run by the WH and the National Christmas/Holiday tree and then around the Mall from the Lincoln Memorial to the Capitol. The Martin Luther King Memorial had opened a few months before and I hadn't seen it yet, so one day I made a short detour to see that. It was about 5:30 AM when I walked through the gently lit memorial--no one else was there. I vividly remember standing under the statue of MLK, which is huge, carved out of a giant block of stone. The spotlight created these intense shadows and I probably stood there alone staring up at the figure for a couple of minutes without moving. It was a very powerful scene.

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We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing. --George Bernard Shaw

Hi gang. Hey, 85% really did feel great. It's not ugh to me... unless I have a 70% option. :-)

Multi - Glad for no issues man. That's awesome.

Hackker - Yes, that really felt dry to me... sweat did evaporate a fair amount by comparison. What a great trip you're having. Sounds so fun.

H2T - It's awesome that you're sticking with it and reaching those great milestones. Many give up way before that. I'd love to run along the Charles river. One day maybe.

JOLVM - Awesome re the 10. Dig deep indeed. Tough schedule.

CVB - Awesome re the hawks. Great scenes you describe.

NoCo - hahaha... almost desert. The 68 felt fairly cool compared to the usual. I felt like I must be on a business trip far away from home. :-)

For the QOTD - Like many of you, I've had some great scenes. Some involved the weather, like a fog obscured train along a hilly terrain, and others involved animals. Some of the best have been in the Smoky Mountains. Some of the best feelings have come from running in the rain, early in the morning and by moonlight when I decide to turn off my headlamp and enjoy the quiet footfall as I run.

I was a mess this morning in yoga - unfocused, tight and wobbly. The first day back after a few days off is always the toughest, but today was exceptionally bad. These last 5 days of abbreviated / no running - and, more likely, a little too much overindulgence (pity partying, I guess) - left me kinda loose. With the quad setback, a scheduled 70-mile week turned into 26 - that'll teach me to push tempo pace 2 days post-half marathon. Oh well...here's to hoping a good week or two of focused training will get me back on track!

Hackker - what a trooper. Looking forward to the RR.

htt - nice restraint. Enjoy the RD.

JOLVM - you will deserve a bender after wrapping up an awesome training cycle with that Friday schedule!

cvb - sounds like a full morning to me! I will definitely try to fit in B2B some year.

NoCo - A Labor Day half sounds fun. Any goals?

Mark - by scenes, I was thinking you meant breathtaking vistas, but I've also had some amazing full moon runs at the lake here. There's something special about chuffing along in the cool, dark air, illuminated only by the light of the moon.

Morning people. Back to work for the school year today, teachers report back. I got up early to do my run before work. I think I am going to stick to that schedule for as long as I can. It's partly the heat, but also the difference in running before work and after work. I am so tired after work, the morning I am so much fresher. So 4 - 4:30 AM wake ups until I can no longer stand it

I found the source of my incredible headache, I really am dehydrated. As seen in urine output. I always feel so guilty when I see that, like I should have known better. Could not stop drinking this morning on the way into work, downed 30 oz, and the bathroom stop still looked like that. It must be cumulative, and from Saturday. Very odd, but it was a very bad LR, sunny and I ran out of water. Then flew across the country which further dehydrates a person.

Still did my 6 mile easy today, at a whopping 9:56 pace! And it actually felt medium range hard, so there you have it, when you go hard you wind up recovering hard.

QOTD - Well I still have my "most beautiful bike ride" which was Bear mountain. Truly spectacular scenery the whole way up. I'm drawing a blank on interesting runs (which could be from my dehydrated brain) I guess I have not been running long enough to have the spectacular runs. Most of mine have been marathons and training runs. I need more fun/scenic runs.

Mark - you must drink like crazy to avoid dehydration on those humid runs. Hard to keep enough on hand I would imagine.

DrBart - I haven't caved on the hydration belt yet, but there have been times where I really should have, quite obviously.

Multi - it's nice to run pain free.

Hackker - Wow, that is a lot. I only do that when forced to, were you forced to climb the dunes? Then hit the beach? I love the ocean water after a run, it's instant cooling.

CVB - I used to have that camel backpack for bike riding. I liked it when it was more than half empty, but before that point it was so much weight. I have yet to find the perfect hydration solution, other than water stops where someone hands me a glass of water every mile

HtH - definitely sounds like a rest day. It's kind of pleasant if you are not the sick one to just kick back and Pixar the day away.

JOLVM - you sound like me, cramming it all in so I can go out on the weekend and cram even more in! It's a busy life.

NoCo - congrats on the 200 mile month, that is an impressive milestone to hit.

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